The Grupo de Forcados do Aposento de Turlock, right here from the San Joaquin Valley, where an essential Azorean diaspora resides, has just been invited to participate in two monumental bullfights in Spain. On September 9, this group of young Azorean descendants, led by Cabo Fernando Machado Jr., will be at the Cabra bullring in Córdoba, Spain, in a “corrida” dedicated to Hispanic-Luso bullfighting traditions.


The following day, September 10, the same group will take part in a second bullfight, this time at the 2023 Baza Bullfighting Fair also in Spain, where, once again, the bullfighting traditions of the Iberian peninsula will be highlighted with the presence of a group of Forcados from the Portuguese diaspora in the United States.


“I believe this is a significant opportunity because it’s an honor and a responsibility to represent California bullfighting and our Portuguese and Azorean bullfighting culture. I hope that this initiative will open even more doors for the group: said Fernando Machado Jr., adding: “For me, as the group’s Cabo, I have the duty to elevate the group, to not only continue the magnificent work of my predecessor but to take it to new heights.”


The Grupo de Forcados do Aposento de Turlock has participated in multiple bullfights here in California, in the Azores, and now in Spain. In addition to being a group with a long history in California bullfighting, to which it has contributed immensely, this Group has had a direct action in the daily life of our diaspora, as recently shown with a donation to the California State University, Fresno, to support the exchange of university students dedicated to agriculture who do a month-long internship in the Azores and in California.